Totally Awesome 80s: A Lexicon of the Music, Videos, Movies, TV Shows, Stars, and Trends of that Decadent Decade

by Matthew Rettenmund

The 80s revival starts here! The 80s ended only a few years ago, but already the days of Dynasty , skinny ties, and Valley Girls beckon. In Totally Awesome 80s , Matthew Rettenmund drops the touchy-feely 90s and dredges up the garish, glorious 80s. He's captured it all, from Culture Club to Men at Work, parachute pants to Members Only jackets, E.T. to Porky's , Moonlighting to The Cosby Show , and much more. Deliciously wicked and unnervingly hip, Totally Awesome 80s holds a mirror up to that indulgent decade and lets us laugh at the all-too-familiar reflection.

Genres: Pop Culture, Nonfiction, History, Reference

176 pages, Paperback

First published October 15, 1996

About the author

Author of:

BOY CULTURE
BLIND ITEMS: A (LOVE) STORY
ENCYCLOPEDIA MADONNICA
TOTALLY AWESOME '80S
YOUNG AND HORNY
+ many more

Blogger at BoyCulture.com

Reviews

[Kristin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I only read this because it's in my school library... and it shouldn't be. It's a funny book with lots of random 80s info, but it has lots of cussing and other stuff that is inappropriate for middle schoolers.

[Shant · Rating 4 out of 5]

A creatively organized book remembering the 80's through mostly lists. I read the first part in October 2021 and didn't go back to it, but I remember it was about misc culture stuff. Then, it went into music, movie, and TV based lists. As someone who loves pop culture nostalgia shows (Currently watching the CNN sitcoms one and the National Geographic Rewind the 90s ones), this definitely is right for people who miss the VH1 I Love the Decades series (Not that this book would be found easier than those). I even learned about some new movies/shows (I always heard the phrase Romancing the Stone as a TV episode title reference, but only learned about the Kathleen Turner movie now, as well as a Delta Burke/Dixie Carter show before Designing Women). Since it was written in the 90's, there was the usual jokes that aged badly, but that's expected.

[Michael J · Rating 5 out of 5]

The 80s were a great decade culturally (although not politically as Reagan ushered in the era of tax cuts for the rich which do nothing for the economy and deplete revenue needed to invest in infrastructure). Totally Awesome 80s is something of a reference book covering all aspects of 80s culture including the songs, bands, films, TV shows, and games that made the decade so unique. It's a relatively thin volume, but it covers a lot. I only wish there were more books like this one.

[Christine · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book had a magazine-type format of which I was not a fan. The author had a lot of mean, derogatory things to say about many well-known 80s artists, actors and the like. I guess he was attempting to be funny. Didn’t work.

[HeavyReader · Rating 5 out of 5]

I came of age in the 80's. Well, I graduated in from high school in 1989, so at least I had my teenage years during the 80s. This book reminds me of the pop culture of that time period and brings back a lot of memories.

[Rosa · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't know that this book had a list of what was popular in the eighties and what was not.

[Sheryl · Rating 2 out of 5]

A fun review of the pop culture and history of the 80s.

[Marissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

I would have added another star if the author didn't use so much profanity and dirty language on it. It was uncalled for. But it did bring back great memories.